F1's plans to avoid a financial storm

Formula 1's teams and political figureheads are all considering ways to cut costs as the expensive 2014 regulations draw ever closer to reality. Dieter Rencken assesses the latest inevitable manoeuvring in the paddock

There are two weapons in the fight between the FIA and commercial rights holder FOM over control of Formula 1: regulations and money. The governing body holds all the cards in the rule-making process (which includes cost control), and the CRH creams the sport's profits (shared with the teams). Here the political/commercial landscape has altered dramatically over the past 12 months.

The relationship between the governing body and Formula 1's teams has not always been a bed of roses – it reached its nadir in 2009, shortly before the teams collectively pushed for a total overhaul of the Concorde Agreement. That led to them gaining a doubling of revenues and a swingeing rewrite of the sport's governance procedures. The relationship with the CRH has often been rosier, for Bernie Ecclestone ensured the teams stayed in business.